Allen Iverson Biography

A lightning-quick guard with an attacking style, Allen Iverson played two years of college basketball for Georgetown University before being drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers in 1996. He soon became their leading scorer, earning the nickname “The Answer.” By 1999 he was the leading scorer in the entire NBA, averaging 26.8 points per game. Iverson’s many tattoos, stylish cornrow braids and urban attitude made him a symbol of wider changes in the NBA. He recorded a rap CD (under the name Jewelz) in 2000; Iverson’s coarse lyrics created a minor controversy (for which Iverson eventually apologized), and the album was never released commercially. Despite the off-court distractions, his on-court production continued and Iverson was optimistically considered the next Michael Jordan. Iverson was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player in 2001, and at six feet tall he was the shortest player in NBA history to hold the title. He was traded in December 2006 to the Denver Nuggets, where he joined the budding NBA star Carmelo Anthony. Iverson was traded again in 2008 from Denver to the Detroit Pistons, but didn’t play as well or as much. He missed several games in February and March, and was out for the rest of the season after the first week of April. A free agent after the season, he signed in August of 2009 to play with the Memphis Grizzlies. After missing the pre-season with an injury, he played three games (none of them in Memphis) before his contract was terminated by Memphis. It looked like it might be the end of his career, but in December of 2009 he signed a one-year contract with the Philadelphia 76ers. After playing 25 games, he left the 76ers for the rest of the season to be with his young daughter, who was sick with an undisclosed illness.